Duane Morris – The Artificial Intelligence Blog

August 2, 2026, was a notable convergence point in AI governance: This was the day both the EU AI Act and the California AI Transparency Act brought core transparency obligations into force. Although the two laws were developed independently and differ in scope, they converge on a single regulatory theme: synthetic media must be identifiable and traceable—and in many cases disclosed to users or downstream systems. Such transparency requirements are emerging first because they require the least and enable the most. They address the most acute risks, such as impersonation, deepfakes and other fraud, while being the most technically mature and immediately implementable levers available to regulators.

Read the full Alert on the Duane Morris LLP website.

July 22, 2026July 22, 2026 by Duane Morris

AI and Broker-Dealer Compliance: What Firms Need to Know Now

By Walter Saurack

For most broker-dealers, generative AI continues to become more deeply integrated into day-to-day workflows.

On July 13, 2026, Reuters reported that Morgan Stanley will test digital assistants later this summer that will interact with wealth management clients at all hours of the day. The bank already uses AI agents internally to support its financial advisors.

This follows similar moves by Morgan Stanley’s competitors, such as Goldman Sachs, which announced in February its partnership with Anthropic to build agents for trading, transaction accounting, and client onboarding. A KPMG survey conducted this past June found that 51% of banks were already piloting AI agents.

The regulatory framework is struggling to keep up with adoption at such a scale, leaving firms to confront three pressing questions by themselves: Are AI prompts and outputs records that firms should be legally required to retain? What do firms owe customers if their data were to touch a third-party AI model? And what should an AI-use policy actually say?

Here is where regulators and the largest firms currently stand on each.

April 17, 2026April 17, 2026 by Duane Morris

Is AI Quielty Undermining Your Overtime Exemptions?

Alex W. Karasik, a partner and member of the firm’s Class Action Defense Team, was quoted in the 2026 Spring edition of SHRM HR Quarterly in the article “Is AI Quietly Undermining Your Overtime Exemptions?”

Read the full article for Alex’s insights on the SHRM HR Quarterly website.

March 4, 2026March 4, 2026 by Duane Morris

The Perils of Privilege Waivers Through AI

By Courtney L. Baird and Ryan S. Crawford

In an issue of first impression, a federal court held that information a defendant input to a consumer generative AI system on his own initiative is not protected by the attorney-client privilege or the work product doctrine. That holding extended to documents the defendant generated using AI and later shared with counsel.

Read the Alert on the Duane Morris LLP website.

February 26, 2026February 26, 2026 by Duane Morris

AI Transcription Tools: Privacy, Privilege and Ethical Pitfalls

By Sharon Caffrey and Seth H. Dawicki

Duane Morris Partner Sharon L. Caffrey and Associate Seth H. Dawicki co-authored the article “AI Transcription Tools: Privacy, Privilege and Ethical Pitfalls” for Law.com. Sharon and Seth discuss the privacy and ethical pitfalls of the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence transcription tools.

Read a reprinted version of the article on the Duane Morris LLP website.

February 13, 2026February 13, 2026 by Duane Morris

Newsom Under Pressure as California Unions Endorse New AI Bills

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has historically vetoed legislation surrounding automation. However, as he sets his sights on the White House, Newsom has been slow to set new regulations surrounding artificial intelligence while facing mounting pressure from the state’s unions. Duane Morris Partner Alex Karasik discussed the legal risks California employers should keep in mind when implementing the new technology.

Read the full article in International Employment Lawyer.

November 24, 2025November 24, 2025 by Duane Morris

Gen AI Class Action Key Decisions and Trends in 2025

This year has been a busy one in the generative artificial intelligence (gen AI) class action litigation landscape. New pleadings were filed, including several new class actions, several consolidated and amended complaints, and one appeal. Several key decisions were issued, including a trio that formed a three-way split of authority on how to determine whether training a gen AI model on copyrighted materials constitutes “fair use” under the Copyright Act. Additionally, one humongous settlement was reached.

Read the full article by Justin Donoho.

November 18, 2025 by Duane Morris

Copyrightability of AI-Generated Works – Petition for Certiorari Tees Up Supreme Court Review of Test Case on “Human Authorship

By Mark Lerner

Following a refusal to grant a copyright registration to Stephen Thaler for a work whose sole author was identified as “Creativity Machine,” a generative AI Thaler created, the D.C. Circuit affirmed that works authored exclusively by artificial intelligence are ineligible for copyright protection under the Copyright Act, which the court read to require human authorship, in keeping with the Copyright Office interpretation and prior case law. A petition for certiorari and a supporting amicus brief now ask the U.S. Supreme Court to take up the question of whether the Copyright Act requires human authorship, arguing that the statute’s text, structure and purpose do not categorically impose such a requirement and that existing doctrines leave room for AI to be recognized as the author of protected works.

Read the full Alert on the Duane Morris website.

October 23, 2025 by Duane Morris

Webinar: AI and Wearables

Duane Morris will host the third session of its Wearable Webinars Series, Product Liability and IP Strategies for Wearables, on Tuesday, November 4, 2025, 12:00 p.m. to 12:30 p.m. Eastern.

REGISTER

Agatha Liu, Ph.D., will cover how wearables with diagnostic, monitoring or therapeutic claims fall under the FDA’s software as a medical device framework, including predetermined change control plans, good machine learning practices and real-world performance monitoring of adaptive algorithms.

October 16, 2025October 16, 2025 by Duane Morris

California’s “No Robo Bosses” Act Won’t Get Governor’s Sign On

By Alex. W. Karasik, Brian L. Johnsrud, and George J. Schaller

Duane Morris Takeaways: On October 13, 2025, California Governor Gavin Newsom, issued a written statement declining to sign Senate Bill 7 – called the “No Robo Bosses” Act (the “Act”). While the Act aimed to restrict when and how employers could use automated decision-making systems and artificial intelligence, Governor Newsom rejected the proposed legislation in terms of the Act’s broad drafting and unfocused notification requirements. Governor Newsom’s statement reflects an initial rebuttal to a wave of pending AI regulations as states wrestle with suitable AI guidance. Given the pro-employee tendencies of Governor Newsom and California regulators generally, this outcome is a mild surprise. Employers nonetheless should expect continued scrutiny of AI regulations before enactment.

This legislative activity surely sets the stage for what many believe is the next wave of class action litigation.

See more on the Duane Morris Class Action Defense Blog.